Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Yofire Island’

ABSTRACT

A distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Yofire Island’, characterized by its uniform and upright plant habit; strong and freely branching growth habit; dark green glossy foliage; uniform and freely flowering habit; early flowering, eight-week response time; large daisy-type inflorescences that are about 11.7 cm in diameter; red and yellow bi-colored ray florets; and good postproduction longevity with plants maintaining good substance and color for at least four weeks in an interior environment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofChrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemum×morifolium andhereinafter referred to by the name ‘Yofire Island’.

The new Chrysanthemum is a product of a planned breeding programconducted by the Inventors in Fort Myers, Fla. and Salinas, Calif. Theobjective of the breeding program is to create new potted Chrysanthemumcultivars that are suitable for year-round production with uniform plantgrowth habit, good vigor, desirable inflorescence form and floretcolors, fast response time, and good postproduction longevity.

The new Chrysanthemum originated from a cross made by the Inventors inOctober, 1994, in Salinas, Calif., of the Chrysanthemum cultivar Rage,disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,770, as the female, or seed, parentwith a proprietary Chrysanthemum seedling selection identified as codenumber YB-5547, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The newChrysanthemum was discovered and selected by the Inventors as a singleflowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross grown in acontrolled environment in Salinas, Calif. The selection of this plantwas based on its uniform plant growth habit, desirable inflorescenceform and floret colors, fast response time, and excellent postproductionlongevity.

Asexual reproduction of the new Chrysanthemum by vegetative tip cuttingswas first conducted in Fort Myers, Fla. in July, 1996. Asexualreproduction by cuttings has shown that the unique features of this newChrysanthemum are stable and reproduced true to type in successivegenerations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The cultivar Yofire Island has not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat withvariations in environment such as temperature, daylength, and/or lightlevel, wihout, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe the unique characteristics of ‘Yofire Island’. These characteristicsin combination distinguish ‘Yofire Island’ as a new and distinctChrysanthemum:

1. Uniform and upright plant habit.

2. Strong and freely branching growth habit.

3. Dark green glossy foliage.

4. Uniform and freely flowering habit.

5. Can be grown as a disbud or spray-type.

6. Early flowering, eight-week response time.

7. Large daisy-type inflorescences that are about 11.7 cm in diameter.

8. Red and yellow bi-colored ray florets.

9. Good postproduction longevity with plants maintaining good substanceand color for at least four weeks in an interior environment.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ primarily from plants of thefemale parent selection in ray floret coloration as plants of the newChrysanthemum have bright red and yellow bi-colored ray florets whereasplants of the female parent selection have solid bright red-colored rayflorets.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ primarily from plants of the maleparent selection in ray floret coloration as plants of the newChrysanthemum have bright red and yellow bi-colored ray florets whereasplants of the male parent selection have light pink-colored ray florets.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum can be compared to plants of thecultivar Pelee, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,464. In side-by-sidecomparisons conducted by the Inventors in Salinas, Calif., plants of thenew Chrysanthemum differed from plants of the cultivar Pelee in thefollowing characteristics:

1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum had a more uniform plant habit andflowering response than plants of the cultivar Pelee.

2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum had darker green foliage than plantsof the cultivar Pelee.

3. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum flowered about four to five daysearlier than plants of the cultivar Pelee.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum can also be compared to plants of thecultivar Yococoa Beach, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,317. Inside-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventors in Salinas, Calif.,plants of the new Chrysanthemum differed from plants of the cultivarYococoa Beach in the following characteristics:

1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum had a more uniform plant habit thanplants of the cultivar Yococoa Beach.

2. Ray floret color of plants of the new Chrysanthemum was brighter andmore vivid than ray floret color of plants of the cultivar YococoaBeach.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

The accompanying colored photographs illustrate the overall appearanceof the new Chrysanthemum showing the colors as true as it is reasonablypossible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in thephotographs may differ from the color values cited in the detailedbotanical description which accurately describe the colors of the newChrysanthemum.

The photograph on the first sheet comprises a side perspective view of atypical flowering plant of ‘Yofire Island’ grown as a disbud-type.

The photograph on the second sheet comprises a close-up view of typicalinflorescences of ‘Yofire Island’ grown as a disbud-type.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

In the following description, color references are made to The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart except where general terms ofordinary dictionary significance are used. The following observationsand measurements describe plants grown and flowered during the summer inSalinas, Calif., in a fiberglass-covered greenhouse and under conditionswhich approximate those generally used in commercial pottedChrysanthemum production. During the production of these plants, thefollowing conditions were measured: day temperatures, 21 to 27° C.;night temperatures, 17 to 19° C.; and light levels, 5,000 to 6,000foot-candles. Four unrooted cuttings were directly stuck in 15-cmcontainers, exposed to long day/short night conditions, and pinched onceabout 14 days later. At the time of pinching, the photoinductive shortday/long night treatments were started. Plants used for this descriptionwere grown as disbud-types. Measurements and numerical values representaverages of typical flowering plants.

Botanical classification: Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar YofireIsland.

Commercial classification: Daisy-type potted Chrysanthemum.

Parentage:

Female, or seed, parent.—Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar Rage,disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,770.

Male, or pollen, parent.—Proprietary Chrysanthemum×morifolium seedlingselection identified as code number YB-5547, not patented.

Propagation:

Type.—Terminal tip cuttings.

Time to initiate roots.—About four days at 21° C.

Time to produce a rooted cutting.—About ten days at 21° C.

Root description.—White, fibrous.

Rooting habit.—Freely branching.

Plant description:

Appearance.—Herbaceous daisy-type potted Chrysanthemum that can be grownas a disbud or as a spray-type. Stems mostly upright and somewhatoutwardly spreading; uniform crown. Very freely branching, about fivelateral branches develop after removal of terminal apex (pinching);dense and full plants.

Plant height.—About 32 cm.

Plant width.—About 38 cm.

Lateral branches (peduncles).—Length: About 26.5 cm. Diameter: About 5mm. Internode length: About 2.1 cm. Strength: Strong. Texture:Pubescent. Color: 146A.

Foliage description.—Arrangement: Alternate. Quantity of leaves perlateral stem: About 11 or 12. Length: About 7.5 cm. Width: About 5.7 cm.Apex: Cuspidate to mucronate. Base: Attenuate to truncate. Margin:Palmately lobed, sinuses between lateral lobes divergent. Texture: Upperand lower surfaces with very fine pubescence; veins prominent on lowersurface. Color: Young foliage, upper surface: Darker than 147A. Youngfoliage, lower surface: Darker than 147B. Mature foliage, upper surface:Close to 147A, glossy. Mature foliage, lower surface: Close to 147B.Venation, upper surface: Close to 147A. Venation, lower surface: 146B.Petiole length: About 2.3 cm. Petiole diameter: About 5 mm. Petiolecolor: Upper surface: Close to 146A. Lower surface: Close to 146B.

Inflorescence description:

Appearance.—Daisy-type inflorescence form with elongated oblong-shapedray florets. Inflorescences borne on terminals above foliage. Disk andray florets arranged acropetally on a capitulum. Not fragrant. Can begrown as a disbud or spray-type.

Flowering response.—Under natural conditions, plants flower in theautumn/winter in the Northern Hemisphere. At other times of the year,inflorescence initiation and development can be induced under shortday/long night conditions (at least 13.5 hours of darkness). Earlyflowering; plants exposed to two weeks of long day/short nightconditions followed by photoinductive short day/long night conditionsflower about 50 to 54 days later when grown as a disbud-type and about54 to 58 days later when grown as a spay-type.

Postproduction longevity.—Inflorescences maintain good color andsubstance for at least four weeks in an interior environment.

Quantity of inflorescences.—Grown as a disbud-type, only oneinflorescence, the terminal inflorescence, devolops per lateral branch.

Inflorescence bud.—Height: About 5 mm. Diameter: About 7 mm. Color:Close to 137A.

Inflorescence size.—Diameter: About 11.7 cm. Depth (height): About 3.2cm. Diameter of disc: About 2 cm. Receptacle diameter: About 1 cm.

Ray florets.—Shape: Elongated-oblong. Orientation: Initially upright,then about 60 to 65° from vertical. Aspect: Mostly flat and straight.Length: About 5.5 cm. Width: About 1.2 cm. Apex: Acute or emarginate.Base: Attenuate; short corolla tube. Corolla tube length: About 5 mm.Margin: Entire. Texture: Smooth, glabrous, satiny. Number of ray floretsper inflorescence: About 35 arranged in one or two rows. Color: Whenopening and fully expanded, upper surface: Ground color, yellow, 9A;overlain with red, 46A to 53A, mostly towards the apex and along centralveins. When opening and fully expanded, lower surface: Ground color,yellow, 8A to 8B; faintly underlain with red, 53A, towards apex.

Disc florets.—Arrangement: Massed at center of receptacle. Shape:Tubular, elongated. Apex: Five-pointed. Length: About 8 mm. Width: Apex:About 1.5 mm. Base: About 1 mm. Number of disc florets perinflorescence: About 185. Color: Immature: 144A to 154A. Mature: Apex:7A. Mid-section: Closest to 145C. Base: Closest to 155D.

Reproductive organs.—Androecium: Present on disc florets only. Anthercolor: 7A to 9A. Pollen amount: Moderate. Pollen color: 14A. Gynoecium:Present on both ray and disc florets.

Seed.—Seed production has not been observed.

Disease resistance: Resistance to pathogens common to Chrysanthemums hasnot been observed on plants grown under commercial greenhouseconditions.

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plantnamed ‘Yofire Island’, as illustrated and described.